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An Educator's Guide an Educator’s Guid E INSIDE • Connections to Education Standards • Introduction to Moons • Glossary of Terms • Classroom Activities Table of Contents Photo © Michael Malyszko Photo © Michael For The TeaCher About This Guide .............................................................................................................................................. 4 Connections to Education Standards .................................................................................................... 5 Show Synopsis .................................................................................................................................................. 6 Major Themes: Moons as Diverse Worlds .................................................................................................. 8 Major Themes: Moons as Part of a System ............................................................................................... 9 Delving Deeper: Earth’s Moon .....................................................................................................................10 Delving Deeper: Moon Formation ...............................................................................................................11 Delving Deeper: Exploration and Spacecraft ..........................................................................................13 Glossary of Terms ..........................................................................................................................................17 Online Learning Tools Classroom aCTiViTies Grades 3 – 5 ......................................................................................................................................................25 Grades 6 – 8 ......................................................................................................................................................27 Grades 9 – 12 ...................................................................................................................................................29 Museum of Science, Boston • Moons: Worlds of Mystery Educator’s Guide • Table of Contents Page 2 For THE TeaCHER About This Guide • Connections to Education Standards • Show Synopsis • Major Themes • Delving Deeper • Glossary of Terms • Online Learning Tools Museum of Science, Boston • Moons: Worlds of Mystery Educator’s Guide • For the Teacher Page 3 about This guide Museum of Science, Boston • Moons: Worlds of Mystery Educator’s Guide • For the Teacher Page 4 Connections to education standards The general education standards that are explored in this show are listed below. national science education standards graDe ConTenT sTanDarDs graDe ConTenT sTanDarDs leVel leVel All Abilities necessary to do scientific inquiry 5 – 8 Transfer of energy Understanding about scientific inquiry Structure of the Earth system Science as a human endeavor Earth in the solar system K – 4 Light, heat, electricity, and magnetism 9 – 12 Motions and forces Characteristics of organisms Interactions of energy and matter Changes in the Earth and sky The origin and evolution of the Earth system Understanding about science and technology graDe Conn Te T sTanDarDs leVel 3 – 5 The water cycle The Earth in the solar system States of matter 6 – 8 Earth’s history The Earth in the solar system 9 – 12 Matter and energy in the Earth system Earth processes and cycles Heat and heat transfer Museum of Science, Boston • Moons: Worlds of Mystery Educator’s Guide • For the Teacher Page 5 show synopsis Phobos and Deimos, the two tiny moons of Mars, orbit the planet in a matter of hours. Image © Museum of Science When you imagine the solar system, you often think of the Sun and its eight planets. Maybe the asteroid belt or a comet. But what about moons? What do they contribute to the whole system, and what do they look like? Our Moon is certainly visible from the Earth—we’ve even traveled there! But there are more than one hundred known moons throughout the solar system, orbiting five of the other planets and even some of the asteroids and Kuiper Belt objects. Our Moon has been a constant source of wonder for humanity. Formed from a violent collision early in our solar system’s history, the Moon has contributed not only to Earth’s stability, but possibly even to the conditions making our planet habitable for early life. Galileo Galilei was the first true explorer of moons, and his discovery of Jupiter’s four largest moons radically changed the study of astronomy. Since then, the rise of new technologies has allowed humanity to scout the solar system for more moons, and their discoveries have turned up many surprises. For example, moons are incredibly diverse in both appearance and dynamics. Jupiter’s moons run the gamut from Io’s volcanic inferno to Europa’s icy subsurface oceans. Museum of Science, Boston • Moons: Worlds of Mystery Educator’s Guide • For the Teacher Page 6 show synopsis (continued) Moons are also vital parts of the solar system. Their gravity and interactions govern phenomena such as tidal force and planetary ring structure. Their influence can be felt on any scale. Perhaps most intriguing is the exploration of moons that could support extraterrestrial life. Titan’s liquid oceans of ethane and methane and Europa’s vast subsurface water oceans are prime targets for this study, and encourage us to reevaluate just what conditions are suitable for life. The discovery of moons orbiting asteroids and Kuiper Belt objects like Pluto shows just how vast and diverse our solar system really is. With these revelations, it is exciting to wonder where humanity’s curiosity and imagination will take us next. Io, one of Jupiter’s large moons, is covered in active volcanoes. Image © Museum of Science Museum of Science, Boston • Moons: Worlds of Mystery Educator’s Guide • For the Teacher Page 7 major Themes: moons as Diverse Worlds not all moons are dry, dusty, cratered worlds like our Moon. Each has a unique history and relationship with its planetary partner, and some have actively evolving surfaces. Some notable examples are: io Io • Orbits Jupiter • Strong tidal forces contort crustal rock, creating lots of heat • Over 400 active volcanoes europa • Orbits Jupiter Europa • Liquid ocean under icy crust • Tidal forces provide heat to warm the ocean and prevent freezing Titan • Orbits Saturn • Second largest moon in our solar system—larger than Mercury! Titan • Has a thick atmosphere • Has lakes and rivers of liquid methane and ethane, which undergo a cycle similar to the water cycle on Earth enceladus • Orbits Saturn Enceladus • Geysers at south pole erupt icy particles which may contribute to Saturn’s rings Triton • Orbits Neptune • Retrograde orbit suggests it was likely captured from the Kuiper Belt Triton • Has active geysers that erupt plumes of nitrogen and dust Charon • Orbits Pluto • About half the size of Pluto, causing the two objects to orbit Stryk; Titan and Enceladus Images Courtesy of NASA/ Image Courtesy of NASA/JPL/Ted Europa of Arizona; Io Image Courtesy of NASA/JPL/University Image Courtesy of NASA/JPL/USGS JPL/Space Science Institute; Triton a point in space outside Pluto itself (the barycenter) • Locked in synchronous orbit with Pluto Museum of Science, Boston • Moons: Worlds of Mystery Educator’s Guide • For the Teacher Page 8 major Themes: moons as Part of a system even though they are individual worlds with varying histories and circumstances, moons are vital parts of the systems they inhabit. For example, tidal forces work on a primary and its satellites at all scales. In the same way that the Moon’s gravitational pull generates Earth’s tides, the combined gravity of Jupiter and its moons creates tremendous tidal heating to fuel the volcanoes on Io. The tidal pull of this system also provides sufficient heat to warm subsurface oceans on Europa and other Jovian moons. On a smaller scale, shepherd moons like Saturn’s Pandora and Prometheus use their gravity to interact with nearby objects, such as the particles making up Saturn’s rings. Their influence leaves gaps and sharply defined edges in the rings. Earth’s Moon exerts a constant, steadying effect on several of our planet’s motions. Some systems, however, are set up for less stable outcomes. For example, some of Uranus’s moons are doomed to future collisions (which could create more moons!). On any scale, it is clear that moons are more than passive bystanders in the solar system. PLAnETS AnD Their MoonS: (as of December 2012) Mercury: 0 Venus: 0 Earth: 1 Mars: 2 Jupiter: 66 Saturn: 62 uranus: 27 neptune: 13 Io Image Courtesy of NASA/JPL/University of Arizona; Europa Image Courtesy of NASA/JPL/Ted Stryk; Titan and Enceladus Images Courtesy of NASA/ Image Courtesy of NASA/JPL/Ted Europa of Arizona; Io Image Courtesy of NASA/JPL/University Image Courtesy of NASA/JPL/USGS JPL/Space Science Institute; Triton Museum of Science, Boston • Moons: Worlds of Mystery Educator’s Guide • For the Teacher Page 9 Delving Deeper: earth’s moon A view of Earth rising behind our Moon. Image © Museum of Science Why is earth’s moon important? Without the Moon, life on Earth might be very different, or it might not have come to exist at all! The most important influence of the Moon is tidal force. But tides accomplish more than just the rise and fall of the oceans—they can affect the motions of the entire planet. • slowing of the earth’s rotation Billions of years ago, the young Earth could have had a day as short as 9 hours. However, the Moon’s gravitational pull on Earth’s
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